Local business happenings

by Sue Serdinak

According to Nexstar Media Wire, dive bars have an inexplicable charm with a down-to-earth, no-frills vibe and friendly folks. The wire service recently ran a list of the best dive bars in the country, listing one per state. For Ohio, Teschner’s Taverne received the designation. Nexstar directs the reader to the Yelp site, which shows that Teschner’s reviews are rated 4.5 with cold beer and burgers topping the list of high acclaim.

Anastasia Teschner opened Teschner’s in 1979 in a building that was built in 1929 and housed Beacon Light Tavern with a gas station in front. Today, her step grandson, Vincent Delgross, is the chef.

Olesia’s Taverne is proceeding with its plans to open French Crepes & Coffee in the building adjacent to the Taverne on the south. Joe Butano, co-owner of the Taverne, said the two-story 1845 building would operate during hours when the Taverne is closed. They plan to serve pan-fried foods, such as crepes and eggs and other French bakery items.

Greg Sobotnik owns the building that housed the Shell station on Wheatley Road, adjacent to the I-77 exit ramp. It has been shuttered since Sobotnik sold his business to TrueNorth, a company with stores in Ohio, Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin. TrueNorth built a new service center associated with Shell Oil just a quarter of a mile to the west, on a parcel of land that they purchased from the Kinross Lakes business park.

TrueNorth offered jobs to Sobotnik’s former employees and eight out of nine accepted, including Char Lippmann who is the store manager. She said that Sobotnik always treated them right and she is glad the team could stay together.  TrueNorth hired additional staff to handle the larger store.

Sobotnik has retained ownership of the one-acre parcel where the former gas station stands vacant. That property is in the township and it does not have a connection for either sewer or water, which would prohibit them from opening another station on the property. Sobotnik could not be reached for comment about his plans for the property.

Richfield Village officials would like to see the Ohio Department of Transportation add a second lane to the exit ramp off I-77, but ODOT has not yet shown an interest in doing so.

The TomTreyCo Company, based in Uniontown, Ohio, recently purchased the Richfield McDonald’s on Wheatley Road. Thomas Locke, the owner of the company, operates McDonald’s restaurants in Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and is considered one of the largest McDonald’s franchisees in the United States. On Veterans Day, he offered a free meal to all veterans at any of his restaurants.  

Congratulations to Frank Fedrowisch, who is the new owner of Tony’s Auto Works. Fedrowisch got his first mechanic job when he was 15 working for Tony Hrach. He went off to Cuyahoga Falls and operated his own shop, ACAR, for several years.

When Tony and his wife, Patti, who for several years was a Revere bus driver, were ready to retire, Frank made an offer to buy Tony’s Auto Works. About the same time, the owner of the building died and the property was auctioned off.

Fedrowisch was the successful bidder, and became the owner of the property. He is pleased to work in his hometown again and is considering if he should change the name of the auto center.

There is a lot of focus on “giving” at this time of year, but local company GMS, promotes philanthropy of time and dollars throughout the year. When the company celebrated its 25 years in business, they committed to 25 days straight of volunteer efforts. They held a fundraiser for Hurricane Ian’s victims, filled backpacks for school children, worked at a homeless shelter and purchased and donated books for children.

GMS supports the volunteer effort by coordinating the events and allowing employees to be paid for their volunteer time. Mike Kahoe, the owner of the company, promotes the efforts, quoting the principle that “to whom much is given, much will be required.” ∞